Class Acts: The Ten Top Culinary Events for February 23-27

Don't let the snow hold you hostage in your house this week. Get out of the kitchen and out to some of the great culinary events around town, which include classes and lectures with top chefs, a celebration of National Clam Chowder Day and an attempt to create the world's largest vegan banana split. And, of course, Denver Restaurant Week continues through March 1; find full details on that annual eating orgy here.

Monday, February 23

Frasca Food and Wine's Monday Night Wine Dinner Series continues with an exploration of the wines of Robert Biale with winemaker Tres Goetting. The Monday Night Wine Dinners are $50 per person for four courses, not including optional wine pairings (ranging from $45 to $50 per person). For reservations, call 303-442-6966.

Tuesday, February 24

Work Options for Women is hosting a cooking class at Cafe Options today from 6 to 8 p.m. Chef Justin Cucci, chef/owner of Root Down and Linger, will be the guest instructor. Tickets are $75 and can be purchased here.

Lola will be serving up a Tabasco Dinner tonight at 6:30 p.m. The five-course, $65 prix fixe meal, part of the Regions of Mexico Dinner Series, will celebrate the Tabasco region of Mexico and will feature tequila and drink pairings. To reserve a spot, call 720-570-8686.

Wednesday is National Clam Chowder Day!

Lori Midson

Wednesday, February 25

It's National Clam Chowder Day! To celebrate, Jax downtown will be offering $7 bowls of New England clam chowder and Jax Glendale will be serving up a cup of seafood clam chowder with mussels, clams, shrimp, potato, chilies, tender belly bacon, fried okra, carrots and roasted garlic cream for just $5.

The Walnut Room is celebrating the four-year anniversary of its open mic night, held the fourth Wednesday of each month. The free, 21+ anniversary celebration begins at 8:30 p.m. — just in time for the Walnut Room’s late night happy hour, which runs from 9 p.m. to midnight every Wednesday and features half-price draft beers and wine and $3 well drinks.

Eric Skokan, farmer and chef at Black Cat Bistro in Boulder will be at CU Boulder at 3 p.m. for a free lecture on sustainability, the farm-to-table movement and the future of food. A reception with refreshments will precede the 3:30 p.m. lecture; find more information here.

Thursday, February 26

Take a trip to Texas with The Seasoned Chef Cooking School from 6:30 to 9:30 p.m. today. In a class called "A Trip to the Lone Star State: Texan Fare from The Avenue Grill," students will learn to make dishes with Texas-sized flavors, including chicken-fried steak with country gravy, red chili, jalapeno cornbread, barbecue pork tenderloin and much more. Tuition is $69 and includes dinner and a prickly pear margarita; register here.

Today at 11:30 a.m., seven Johnson & Wales University Culinary Nutrition students, under the guidance of chef Adam Sacks, will create the World’s Heaviest Vegan Banana Split, loading up nearly 1,000 pounds of student-made vegan ice cream and toppings in an attempt at an entry in Guinness World Records. Students have spent five weeks creating the vegan ice cream from scratch and will build the split with flavors like piña colada, chocolate mole, pumpkin cardamom, Turkish coffee, blueberry balsamic, mango ginger, sweet corn and jalapeño and strawberry basil. The final weigh-in and community tasting will take place on the Johnson & Wales University in front of Centennial Hall.

Garbanzo Mediterranean Grill is teaming up with Colorado-based nonprofit First Descents to support its adventure camps for young adult cancer fighters and survivors. Today a Garbanzo chef will lead a cooking demonstration, teaching participants to cook three recipes from the First Descents cookbook. Hosted at the Metropolitan State University Culinary Demonstration Kitchen, the event starts at 6 p.m. and there is a $10 suggested donation; RSVP here.

Friday, February 27

Steak and Whiskey are two of god's greatest gifts to man. At 6 p.m., Cook Street School of Culinary Arts will celebrate the pair with a class that will teach you how to prepare two different types of steak. At the same time, you'll sip some locally produced spirits and hear from the representative from a local distillery, who will conduct a whiskey tasting. Tuition for the course is $99; register at cookstreet.com.

For information on dozens of culinary events around town, visit our online Food & Drink listings — and if you have information for a culinary event you'd like included in our online calendar, send it to cafe@westword.com.